Connect with us

Elon Musk

Starlink’s launch in Italy paused until Elon Musk hate ends

Published

on

Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Starlink’s launch in Italy has been paused due to the hate Elon Musk is receiving for his political activities.

“Everything has come to a standstill,” Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told La Repubblica. The Defense Minister added that Italy is not discussing a potential deal to use Starlink at the moment.

Earlier this month, Italy’s opposition parties demanded the government stop talking to Musk after the tech billionaire made a comment on X about Starlink services in Ukraine. Elon Musk had commented that Ukraine’s “entire front line would collapse” if Starlink services were cut. Then, Poland’s Foreign Minister accused Elon Musk of threatening to “turn off” Ukraine’s access terminals.

“To be extremely clear, no matter how much I disagree with the Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals. We would never do such a thing or use it as a bargaining chip,” clarified Musk on X after the accusation.

Advertisement

In January 2025, SpaceX was reportedly discussing a $1.6 billion, 5-year Starlink contract with the Italian government. Sources close to the matter noted that Italy’s Intelligence Services and Defense Ministry approved the billion-dollar Starlink deal. The involvement of Italy’s Defense Ministry hinted that Italy may have been discussing a deal for SpaceX’s Starlink Starshield services.

Starlink’s Starshield services are designed for government use, specifically for Earth observation, communications, and hosted payloads. In December 2024, the Pentagon sent SpaceX a contract to expand Ukraine’s Starlink access and provide Starshield internet services.

Elon Musk Controversy

According to Crosetto, Italy’s potential Starlink deal has been paused due to statements “by and about” Elon Musk. The SpaceX and Tesla CEO has become a polarizing figure in the United States and abroad.

“The question is, what is most useful and safe for the nation,” commented Italy’s Defense Minister. He added that discussions with SpaceX about Starlink service in Italy would resume “when the controversies and the times have calmed down.”

The Defense Minister might be alluding to the Tesla vandalism cases that have erupted across the United States and some parts of Europe. Multiple Tesla stores, vehicles, and Supercharger stalls have been set on fire, shot at, or marked with profanity and Nazi symbols in the past few weeks. People’s anger toward Elon Musk is reportedly the source of all the outrage.

Advertisement

Maria--aka "M"-- is an experienced writer and book editor. She's written about several topics including health, tech, and politics. As a book editor, she's worked with authors who write Sci-Fi, Romance, and Dark Fantasy. M loves hearing from TESLARATI readers. If you have any tips or article ideas, contact her at maria@teslarati.com or via X, @Writer_01001101.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

X account with 184 followers inadvertently saves US space program amid Musk-Trump row

Needless to say, the X user has far more than 184 followers today after his level-headed feat.

Published

on

elon-musk-europe-vs-us-relations
Joel Kowsky, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

An X user with 184 followers has become the unlikely hero of the United States’ space program by effectively de-escalating a row between SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump on social media.

Needless to say, the X user has far more than 184 followers today after his level-headed feat.

A Near Fall

During Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s fallout last week, the U.S. President stated in a post on Truth Social that a good way for the United States government to save money would be to terminate subsidies and contracts from the CEO’s companies. Musk responded to Trump’s post by stating that SpaceX will start decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately. 

Musk’s comment was received with shock among the space community, partly because the U.S. space program is currently reliant on SpaceX to send supplies and astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). Without Dragon, the United States will likely have to utilize Russia’s Soyuz for the same services—at a significantly higher price.

X User to the Rescue

It was evident among X users that Musk’s comments about Dragon being decommissioned were posted while emotions were high. It was then no surprise that an X account with 184 followers, @Fab25june, commented on Musk’s post, urging the CEO to rethink his decision. “This is a shame this back and forth. You are both better than this. Cool off and take a step back for a couple days,” the X user wrote in a reply.

Advertisement

Much to the social media platform’s surprise, Musk responded to the user. Even more surprising, the CEO stated that SpaceX would not be decommissioning Dragon after all. “Good advice. Ok, we won’t decommission Dragon,” Musk wrote in a post on X.

Not Planned, But Welcomed

The X user’s comment and Musk’s response were received extremely well by social media users, many of whom noted that @Fab25june’s X comment effectively saved the U.S. space program. In a follow-up comment, the X user, who has over 9,100 followers as of writing, stated that he did not really plan on being a mediator between Musk and Trump. 

“Elon Musk replied to me. Somehow, I became the accidental peace broker between two billionaires. I didn’t plan this. I was just being me. Two great minds can do wonders. Sometimes, all it takes is a breather. Grateful for every like, DM, and new follow. Life’s weird. The internet’s weirder. Let’s ride. (Manifesting peace… and maybe a Model Y.)” the X user wrote.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Tesla tops Cathie Wood’s stock picks, predicts $2,600 surge

Tesla’s future lies beyond cars—with robotaxis, humanoid bots & AI-driven factories. Cathie Wood predicts a 9x surge in 5 years.

Published

on

Cathie Wood shared that Tesla is her top stock pick. During Steven Bartlett’s podcast “The Diary Of A CEO,” the Ark Invest founder highlighted Tesla’s innovative edge, citing its convergence of robotics, energy storage, and AI.

“Because think about it. It is a convergence among three of our major platforms. So, robots, energy storage, AI,” Wood said of Tesla. She emphasized the company’s potential beyond its current offerings, particularly with its Optimus robots.

“And it’s not stopping with robotaxis; there’s a story beyond that with humanoid robots, and our $2,600 number has nothing for humanoid robots. We just thought it’d be an investment, period,” she added.

In June 2024, Ark Invest issued a $2,600 price target for Tesla, which Wood reaffirmed in a March Bloomberg interview, projecting the stock to reach this level within five years. She told Bartlett that Tesla’s Optimus robots would drive productivity gains and create new revenue streams.

Advertisement

Elon Musk echoed Wood’s optimism in a CNBC interview last month.

“We expect to have thousands of Optimus robots working in Tesla factories by the end of this year, beginning this fall. And we expect to scale Optimus up faster than any product, I think, in history to get to millions of units per year as soon as possible,” Musk said.

Tesla’s stock has faced volatility lately, hitting a peak closing price of $479 in December after President Donald Trump’s election win. However, Musk’s involvement with the White House DOGE office triggered protests and boycotts, contributing to a stock decline of over 40% from mid-December highs by March.

The volatility in Tesla stock alarmed investors, who urged Musk to refocus on the company. In a May earnings call, Musk responded, stating he would be “scaling down his involvement with DOGE to focus on Tesla.” Through it all, Cathie Wood and Ark Invest maintained their faith in Tesla. Wood, in particular, predicted that the “brand damage” Tesla experienced earlier this year would not be long term.

Despite recent fluctuations, Wood’s confidence in Tesla underscores its potential to redefine industries through AI and robotics. As Musk shifts his focus back to Tesla, the company’s advancements in Optimus and other innovations could drive it toward Wood’s ambitious $2,600 target, positioning Tesla as a leader in the evolving tech landscape.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Elon Musk and Donald Trump to speak with each other Friday: report

White House aides have scheduled a call between the CEO and U.S. President on Friday.

Published

on

The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
President Donald J. Trump purchases a Tesla on the South Lawn, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)

Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s feud seems to be thawing, at least to some degree.

As per a recent Politico report, White House aides have scheduled a call between the CEO and U.S. President on Friday.

Musk vs. Trump

Musk turned into a staunch critic of Trump amidst the administration’s efforts to pass the “Big Beautiful Bill,” which the CEO claimed would add trillions to the country’s deficit. Trump, for his part, claimed that Musk turned on him due to the adverse effects of the proposed bill on his companies.

The spat between the two powerful men became so notable that Musk called for the impeachment of Trump on X. He also claimed that Trump was in the Epstein list. The U.S. President, for his part, threatened to cancel billions of dollars worth of government contracts with Musk’s companies such as SpaceX.

Potential Truce

As per Politico, however, White House aides have stepped in to temper the tensions and broker peace between the two powerful men. When asked by the outlet about his ongoing feud with the CEO, Trump reportedly stated that “it’s okay” and that “it’s going very well, never done better.” The U.S. President also highlighted his favorability ratings, stating that his “numbers are through the roof.”

Advertisement

While the CEO was very aggressive against Trump in his X posts, he did back down somewhat after some time. When hedge fund manager Bill Ackman argued that Trump and Musk should make peace for the benefit of the United States, the CEO responded with, “You’re not wrong.” Musk also walked back on his decision to decommission SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is essential to NASA’s operations.

Continue Reading

Trending